The MSU Indigenous Law and PolicyCenter will be hosting an interdisciplinary symposium on the Indian Child Welfare Act in anticipation of its 30th anniversary in 2008. Michigan State University Press has agreed to publish the proceedings.

We are seeking paper proposals in the following areas:

·Work by the front-line tribal advocates for Indian children and families – the attorneys who make motions to transfer adoption and custody cases into tribal courts and the non-lawyers who provide the expertise to compel the state courts to grant the motions

·The difficulties faced by tribal advocates seeking compliance with ICWA by state courts. State courts have developed common law precedents that circumvent ICWA in direct contravention of Congressional intent.

·Whether ICWA is a valid exercise of Congressional authority under the Indian Commerce Clause or other provisions of the Constitution

·Responses to Randall Kennedy’s attack on ICWA in his book Interracial Intimacies

Please email proposals to Matthew L.M. Fletcher (matthew.fletcher@law.msu.edu) or Wenona T. Singel (singel@law.msu.edu) by October 20, 2006. Proposals should include a working title, an abstract not to exceed 300 words, and a current vita.

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

Urban Indian Health Care Suit

In Hammitt v. Leavitt, filed in the Eastern District of Michigan before Judge Cohn by a Michigan Law School clinic, the plaintiff class (urban Indians in Detroit and elsewhere) claims the Indian Health Service has failed to meet its health care needs. Only 1 percent of the IHS budget goes toward urban Indian health care.

The motion to dismiss is here. The response brief is here. And the government's reply brief is here. Thanks to Trent Crable for identifying these materials.

Thursday, September 21, 2006

Arizona State Mascot Symposium

Throughout the Twentieth Century, Indians and images of Indians became popular for use in branding products and as mascots for athletic teams. As the Twenty-First Century began, these mascots received new scrutiny and disapproval, most recently with the decision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association to prohibit the use of certain mascots and images at NCAA-sponsored events. This conference will feature key players in the ongoing dispute over the propriety of Indian mascots, and will explore both the legal and ethical implications of the use of such imagery by American universities and public schools.

Commentators include:

Kevin Gover Professor of Law, Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law Arizona State University

Suzan Harjo President and Executive Director, Morning Star Institute

Linda Demaine Associate Professor of Law, Director of Law and Psychology Graduate Program, Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law Arizona State University

Stephanie Fryberg, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Psychology, University of Arizona

Rebecca Tsosie Professor of Law, Executive Director Indian Legal Program, William H. Pedrick Distinguished Scholar Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, Arizona State University

Peter French Director for Lincoln Center for Applied Ethics Arizona State University

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Michigan State ICWA Conference Call for Papers

Call for Papers

The Indian Child Welfare Act at 30: Facing the Future

MichiganStateUniversityCollege of Law

Indigenous Law and PolicyCenter

March 16-17, 2007

The MSU Indigenous Law and PolicyCenter will be hosting an interdisciplinary symposium on the Indian Child Welfare Act in anticipation of its 30th anniversary in 2008. We have submitted a proposal to Michigan State University Press to publish the proceedings. We have commitments from the following scholars to appear and/or publish:

·Work by the front-line tribal advocates for Indian children and families – the attorneys who make motions to transfer adoption and custody cases into tribal courts and the non-lawyers who provide the expertise to compel the state courts to grant the motions

·The difficulties faced by tribal advocates seeking compliance with ICWA by state courts. State courts have developed common law precedents that circumvent ICWA in direct contravention of Congressional intent.

·Whether ICWA is a valid exercise of Congressional authority under the Indian Commerce Clause or other provisions of the Constitution

·Responses to Randall Kennedy’s attack on ICWA in his book Interracial Intimacies

Please email proposals to Matthew L.M. Fletcher (matthew.fletcher@law.msu.edu) or Wenona T. Singel (singel@law.msu.edu) by October 20, 2006. Proposals should include a working title, an abstract not to exceed 300 words, and a current vita.